The Netanyahu regime shot itself in the foot by not admitting responsibility for the IL-20’s downing when caught red-handed with indisputable evidence.

It likely believed Russia would accept its version of what happened to maintain good relations, a misguided judgment as things turned out – compromising its relationship with the Kremlin short of undermining it, I believe.

Events as they unfold ahead will show to what extent Israel miscalculated, notably how it may change the course of war in Syria from now on.

Straightaway after the IL-20’s downing, Russia’s Defense Ministry gave a minute-by-minute account of what happened, using precise radar tracking data to debunk Israel’s fabricated explanation.

After Netanyahu, war minister Lieberman, and the IDF rejected indisputable Russian facts, sticking to its falsified story, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman General Igor Konashenkov said the following on Monday:

“Today, we will give additional data available to the Russian defense ministry to track the Israeli planes and the S-200 system’s missile literally second-by-second.”

“These data were taken from the radars of the command and control post of the S-400 missile system deployed at the Khmeymim airbase.”

The second-by-second account show the flight pattern of Syria’s S-200 missile, targeting a hostile Israeli F-16 warplane. When it clearly took cover behind Russia’s aircraft, the missile “change(d) direction” – away from the Israeli plane to Russia’s.

“The Israeli F-16, which had hid behind the Russian Il-20 from the missile, remained in the patrolling area west of the Syrian coastline” for 10 minutes after the IL-20 was downed, Konashenkov explained. It did not return to its own airspace before the incident, as the IDF falsely claimed.

“Today’s (amplified) data (indisputably) prove that the blame for the tragedy with the Russian Il-20 aircraft lies entirely with the Israeli air force and with those who authorized this kind of activity,” Konashenkov stressed in his Monday briefing, adding:

Israeli “claims about its alleged noninvolvement in this tragedy that claimed lives of 15 Russian servicemen are false.”

Radar tracking is precise. “(I)t is quite clear that the (Syrian) missile was targeting the Israeli jet” until it changed course in midair, “lock(ing) on a target with a larger radar cross-section and slower speed” after the Israeli F-16 hid behind Russia’s IL-20 at the same altitude.

It changed altitude and flight direction after the incident, continuing to patrol Syrian airspace off its coast, refuting the IDF’s Big Lie about returning to Israeli airspace before the downing.

Commenting on Russia’s intention to harden Syrian air defense capabilities after the IL-20’s downing incident, Russia’s Foreign Ministry director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control Vladimir Ermakov said it’s the “inalienable right of any state to provide defense industry assistance to its partners, adding:

Washington and Israel “asked us not to” supply Syria with S-300s earlier. “They they gave their arguments. We took them into consideration. Now the situation has developed in such a way that the arguments do not work any more.”

“There is nothing at all (prohibiting Russia’s move) in the area of reduction of strategic offensive weapons, missile arsenals and nuclear weapons, except the Russia-US agreements.”

“(T)he current situation allows us to assume that the probability of concluding some new agreements in the coming years is not very high.”

Responding to Israeli and US opposition to hardening Syrian defense capabilities, Eermakov stressed that claiming they undermine their national security is unacceptable “fudging.”

He hopes Russia’s moves will help “stabiliz(e)” the situation in Syria by enabling the closure of the country’s airspace “if and where necessary, and most importantly, our servicemen that fulfill their international duty at the Syrian government’s invitation will be protected.”

Supporting IDF aggression in Syria, Haaretz and other Israeli media accepted the IDF’s fabricated account of the IL-20’s downing.

They’re concerned about how hardened Syrian air defense capabilities will adversely affect Israeli aerial operations – without admitting their illegality.

Attacking another country preemptively is naked aggression, not self-defense as the Netanyahu regime falsely claims.

According to Izvestia, Russian electronic warfare equipment already arrived in Syria at its Khmeimim airbase on Monday – able to provide a “radioelectronic dome” over Syria’s airspace.

S-300s may be on their way or coming shortly – initially to protect strategic coastal areas and Syrian territory bordering Israel, Iraq and Jordan – later for protection elsewhere in the country as needed.

They’ll enable Syria’s military to detect and intercept hostile aircraft, ballistic, and other missiles more effectively than so far.

They’ll make it much harder for the US, NATO and Israel to operate illegally in Syrian airspace, short of stopping them.

How Russia’s moves are able to change the course of war in the country will depend on how events ahead unfold.

Stephen Lendman was born in 1934 in Boston, MA. In 1956, he received a BA from Harvard University. Two years of US Army service followed, then an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. After working seven years as a marketing research analyst, he joined the Lendman Group family business in 1967. He remained there until retiring at year end 1999. Writing on major world and national issues began in summer 2005. In early 2007, radio hosting followed. Lendman now hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network three times weekly. Distinguished guests are featured. Listen live or archived. Major world and national issues are discussed. Lendman is a 2008 Project Censored winner and 2011 Mexican Journalists Club international journalism award recipient.

About Stephen

Stephen Lendman was born in 1934 in Boston, MA. In 1956, he received a BA from Harvard University. Two years of US Army service followed, then an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. After working seven years as a marketing research analyst, he joined the Lendman Group family business in 1967.